Toyota to source critical battery components from Redwood Materials
Toyota, Redwood Materials expand battery recycling collaboration
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Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) and Redwood Materials have expanded their battery recycling collaboration. The expansion aims to create additional pathways for automotive batteries used in Toyota's EVs that have reached their end of life. The plan includes an agreement for Toyota to source cathode active materials and anode copper foil from Redwood's recycling activities.
"Working with Redwood Materials, we are creating a circular supply chain to optimize logistics, expand refining, and ensure that the valuable metals recovered can be reintroduced into our future vehicles," said Christopher Yang, group vice president of business development at Toyota Motor North America. "Accelerating our recycling efforts and domestic component procurement gets us closer to our ultimate goal of creating a closed-loop battery ecosystem that will become increasingly important as we add more vehicles with batteries to roads across North America."
"Today, in collaboration with Redwood Materials, Toyota is making a decisive move toward a sustainable future," stated Cal Lankton, Redwood Materials' chief commercial officer. "They're not only working to ensure responsible end-of-life management for their electric vehicles but also planning to build their next generation of EVs, in part, by using sustainable and domestically manufactured battery components."
Toyota's automotive battery recycling needs are expected to grow in the coming years as more of Toyota's EVs reach the end of their lifecycle. A large amount of Toyota's retiring fleet of EVs is in California. Redwood's Nevada recycling facility will support Toyota's North American supply chain. Toyota's battery lifecycle ecosystem is forecast to include the recycling, remanufacturing, and repurposing of the nearly five million operating units.
Toyota has agreed to develop a closed-loop framework that also includes plans to procure cathode active material (CAM) and copper foil from Redwood Materials. Based on the parameters of the agreement, cathode active material recovered and produced from Redwood's recycling activities is expected to feed recycled material into future new battery production at Toyota Battery Manufacturing, North Carolina (TBMNC). The use of recycled materials is anticipated to help increase the focus and relevance of domestic supply chains versus the extensive, carbon-intensive current supply chain of procuring outside of the United States. Toyota plans to bring its nearly $14 billion TBMNC automotive battery manufacturing facility online in 2025.
"Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina's start of production is right around the corner, and we're thrilled to be procuring critical battery components and materials to filter into our battery ecosystem," said Sean Suggs, TBMNC president. "We'll continue to work toward the sourcing and recycling of battery materials here in the United States to maximize these precious resources and reduce our carbon footprint in the process."
Redwood is making investments to scale its technology and facilities to supply U.S. battery cell manufacturers and automakers with strategic battery materials produced in the U.S. Redwood continues to expand its Northern Nevada facility and will break ground on its second battery materials campus, outside Charleston, South Carolina. Both of Redwood's campuses will recycle, refine, and manufacture battery materials, aiming to scale the production of components to 100 GWh annually. Based on this agreement, Redwood will provide materials that include a minimum of 20 percent recycled nickel, 20 percent recycled lithium, and 50 percent recycled cobalt, in their cathode and targeting recycled copper in their anode copper foil.